Fathers sell daughters for lotsa money.… Read the rest
All entries by this author
Catholic Primate of All Ireland Frets About EU 
Aug 25th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It’s too secular; there’s a loss of Christian values; there’s unease in the hearts of Christians.… Read the rest
Susan Neiman on Idealism and Mockery
Aug 25th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Obama’s speech gave Europeans a chance to hear the difference between optimism and idealism. … Read the rest
Jerusalem: Woman Beaten for Being Divorced
Aug 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Woman was beaten and threatened with death by members of the ‘modesty squad.’… Read the rest
Iran: 2000 Demonstrate Against ‘Honour’ Killings
Aug 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
In Kani Dinar a man stabbed his daughter to death for seeking a divorce. She was forced into marriage at 14.… Read the rest
The Life of Prostitution in Kano, Nigeria
Aug 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
A girl can be married at 12 and divorced at 18, with children to support. The way you change a car is the way you change a wife in Kano.… Read the rest
Pakistan: 5 Women Murdered by Burial Alive
Aug 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
3 girls planned to marry men of their choice; they and a mother and an aunt all killed.… Read the rest
Nigerian Man Told to Divorce 76 of 80 Wives
Aug 24th, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Told to take only four wives ‘from the herd’ or remain condemned to death according to Sharia.… Read the rest
The MCB and the Muslim Marriage Contract
Aug 24th, 2008 | By Allen EstersonOn 21st August 2008 Reefat Drabu of the Muslim Council of Britain posted an article on the Guardian’s Comment is Free website in which she defended the decision of the MCB to withdraw support from the proposed
Muslim Marriage Contract as follows:
… Read the restThe marriage contract produced by the Muslim Institute is simply one interpretation of shariah. It is not the shariah that needs to be re-invented, but a change in behaviour among some sections of our diverse Muslim communities. This is an onerous task that cannot be achieved through blustering demands and emphatic slogans that will only resonate in the salons of Islington and Notting Hill…
MCB represents and serves diverse Muslim communities…The MCB is a broad-based inclusive organisation of
Personal and religious views
Aug 23rd, 2008 4:53 pm | By Ophelia BensonNo that’s not right.
The ACLU sued in January, and Smoak ruled this summer that Davis violated Heather Gillman’s rights. “I emphasize that Davis’s personal and religious views about homosexuality are not issues in this case. Indeed, Davis’s opinions and views are consistent with the beliefs of many in Holmes County, in Florida, and in the country,” Smoak wrote in an opinion released last month. “Where Davis went wrong was when he endeavoured to silence the opinions of his dissenters.”
But that doesn’t work. Davis’s personal and religious views about homosexuality are issues in this case. They’re an issue because they’re not sufficiently convincing or justified or universal or defensible to justify his actions. If they had been, they … Read the rest
Florida School District Sued Over ‘Witch Hunt’
Aug 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Federal judge reprimands school principal for targeting gays; locals consider principal a hero.… Read the rest
What’s a Pastor Doing Interrogating Candidates?
Aug 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
We pretend we’re not applying a religious test when we’re really applying a religious test. … Read the rest
Katha Pollitt on Obama’s Faith-based Plans
Aug 23rd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
In other wealthy industrialized countries, children learn to read in school, not the church basement. … Read the rest
Effort to Ban Trans-religion Organ Transplants
Aug 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Egyptian Med Assoc wants to prohibit transplants between Muslim donor and Xian recipient or vice versa.… Read the rest
Channel 4 Returns to Undercover Mosque
Aug 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
One preacher calls for adulterers, homosexuals, women who act like men and apostates to be killed.… Read the rest
HRH’s Fantasy Farming Won’t Feed Africa’s Poor
Aug 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Organic peasant agriculture is a solution for the angst of affluence, but not hunger. Its apotheosis is the ban on GM crops.… Read the rest
Burchill is Wrong: Religion is Anti-feminist
Aug 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Religion is and always has been antithetical to women’s freedom and equality.… Read the rest
ITV Nixes ‘Imam of Dibley’
Aug 22nd, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The lawyers said it might be culturally insensitive. Isn’t everything.… Read the rest
Christian feminist is an oxymoron
Aug 22nd, 2008 11:18 am | By Ophelia BensonOi! Catherine Elliott is writing our book.
[T]he term “Christian feminist” is an oxymoron; it’s a glaring contradiction in terms on a par with “compassionate conservative” and “pro-life anti-abortionist”. Christianity is and always has been antithetical to women’s freedom and equality, but it’s certainly not alone in this. Whether it’s one of the world’s major faiths or an off-the-wall cult, religion means one thing and one thing only for those women unfortunate enough to get caught up in it: oppression. It’s the patriarchy made manifest, male-dominated, set up by men to protect and perpetuate their power.
You’ll have noticed that male clerics like to say that they’re terribly sorry but it’s an absolute rule of their outfit that women … Read the rest
Sahotra Sarkar Reviews Steve Fuller on ID
Aug 21st, 2008 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
For readers seeking an introduction to the technical issues surrounding creationism, this book is useless.… Read the rest
